Wisconsin School buys 800 iPads with Microsoft's cash

The iPad is quickly making its way in to the classroom and with the recent iBooks announcement, the trend will continue to grow. For one school in Madison, Wisconsin, they just purchased 800 iPads with Microsoft cash.

The basis for the purchase started back in 2009 when the State of Wisconsin negotiated a settlement with Microsoft that related to a consumer lawsuit over software. The result of that settlement put cash into the school systems, which is now funding the purchase of the iPads. The irony is that Microsoft is now indirectly purchasing a product that it hopes to quash with Windows 8 tablets. The company is once again late to market and playing catch-up against more established products.

The entire state of Wisconsin is benefiting from the outcome of the lawsuit. Microsoft give the state $3.4 million dollars that the state then divided equally among the schools.